Layered Cranberry Salad Recipe With Cream Cheese Topping

To be honest, this cranberry salad recipe, with its sweet & tangy cream cheese topping, is probably more of a dessert, but we serve it as a side dish at all of our holiday dinners… SO good, a MUST TRY recipe!

Cranberry Salad For Thanksgiving

I honestly don’t remember when this cranberry salad recipe first started making an appearance at our family’s Thanksgiving dinner table. Somewhere along the way, a lovely little slice made its way to a separate plate at my place setting, and from then on it was a yearly tradition — right alongside my Grandma’s cream corn casserole. It wouldn’t feel like Thanksgiving without these two dishes!

Oh wait… You caught that separate plate thing, huh?! Have I mentioned that I absolutely cannot stand to have my food touch? Can’t. Stand. It. So if you’re planning to invite me to a large dinner at your house, plan on having extra plates available for this mama!

Anyhow, back to the cranberry jello “salad” — if that’s what you really want to call it. It’s one of those retro recipes that teenagers have a tendency to turn up their noses at. I know I sure did…

I mean, it was made with cranberries, eeewwwww! At that age, cranberries ran a close second to asparagus. In my mind they were sour, slightly tough, and generally to be avoided at all costs. And Jell-o?!? Um, no thanks — pass the mashed potatoes, please.

Cranberry Jello Salad With Cream Cheese

But then I took my obligatory bite… and my world was forever changed. Seriously.

There are so many flavors and textures going on in this cranberry jello salad. Layers of ingredients that I never would have thought about pairing, but somehow they JUST WORK. And the results will rock your world!

The pineapple and Jell-o add just enough sweetness to counter the tartness of the cranberries and the cream cheese/sour cream topping. I mean, really — how can you go wrong with that combination?

Top the whole thing off with plenty of toasted walnuts or pecans for a bit of crunch and extra flavor, and you’ve got a to-die-for salad/side/dessert whatever-you-want-to-call-it.

Easy Cranberry Salad Recipe: Dessert or Side?

Truthfully, this easy cranberry salad is more of a dessert. But if you’re coming to my house for Thanksgiving, you’ll find it served as a side with the turkey and all of the trimmings. And who’s counting anyhow?!? Especially on Thanksgiving…

I should note that I don’t JUST serve cranberry salad at Thanksgiving. It’s also ideal for Christmas dinner, Easter dinner, really any time. My kids request it often throughout the year, and I’m always happy to make it!

Layer number two is simply a mixture of softened cream cheese, sour cream, and granulated sugar. I could just eat this stuff with a spoon! And I’m warning you now, the whole family will fight over who gets to lick the beaters — so make it after they’re in bed. Then they’re all yours. ;)

Two quick things to note, and then I’ll drop the recipe:

1| I’ve forgotten to buy the cranberry juice before, and if that happens, you can just substitute an equal amount of water. The end result is slightly less tart, but if your family won’t drink the rest of the juice, you may want to just skip it and avoid the waste.

2| DO NOT use fresh pineapple in this recipe. Fresh pineapple contains an enzyme called bromelain, which will prevent the gelatin from solidifying. Use canned crushed pineapple, as the bromelain is destroyed during the canning process.

Layered Cranberry Salad Recipe

Yield: 16 servings

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Additional Time: 3 hours

Total Time: 3 hours20 minutes

To be honest, this easy cranberry salad recipe, with its sweet & tangy cream cheese topping, is probably more of a dessert, but we serve it as a side dish at all of our holiday dinners... SO good, a MUST TRY recipe!

Cream together cream cheese, sugar, and sour cream with a hand mixer until smooth.

When the cranberry jello mixture is firm, spread the cream cheese topping over the top. Garnish with additional chopped toasted walnuts or pecans. Refrigerate for about an hour to allow the topping to firm up.

Notes

DO NOT use fresh pineapple in this recipe -- it will prevent the gelatin from setting up.

Cranberry Jello Salad With Cream Cheese Topping

I’ve head from SO many of you that you hate to cover up the beautiful cranberry jello layer, and I totally get it. This is one reason why I prefer to serve it in a 9×13″ Pyrex glass baking dish — so you can see that gorgeous ruby red color through the side.

But you can totally offer your guests the best of both worlds. Simply prepare the cream cheese topping as directed in the recipe, and refrigerate it in a separate bowl. Then you can just top each slice off with a dollop when serving. Either way, don’t forget to save some extra toasted walnuts or pecans for the garnish!

I’d love to see how your cranberry salad turns out… Tag me @Unsophisticook on Instagram or use the hashtag #Unsophisticook so I can check it out. Enjoy!

How do you prefer your cranberry jello salad, with or without the cream cheese topping?